CB360.com To Stream Challenge

College Baseball 360.com will be streaming eight games from the Big Ten/Big East Challenge. This, of course, is great news. It's not only a sign of college baseball's expanding coverage, but provides the event and the conference with more exposure, as well.

Wrapping Up The Challenge

The initial Big East/Big Ten Challenge is over. It's safe to call the first foray a success. It might be easier for me to come to that conclusion, as the conference I spend 99% of my time covering prevailed. Yet, that's not the reason I'd classify it as a success.

The event generated more media exposure than nearly anything else the conferences could have done independently. Let's be honest, if Ohio State had gone 3-0 over the weekend playing anyone else not in the top 30, would they have been ranked today? Not a chance. That's not a slap at the Buckeyes performance, which was terrific, but it's indicative of the respect and media attention the challenge created.

It was also a boon for MLB scouts. To assemble the two cold weather conferences together in a single region for three days allowed scouts to get an extended look at players that they might not take a second look at. In that sense, the Big East/Big Ten Challenge was a success for the players, MLB and the event organizers.

Now, do we need to see the entire Big East participate? Absolutely. (I'm thinking Louisville would have preferred this event over their weekend plans.) Do we need some television coverage? Do I really need to ask? I understand money is the answer, but how the Big Ten Network doesn't provide some kind of coverage remains mind-numbing.

All in all, though, it was a solid opening act for the event. The organizers deserve plenty of credit. Hopefully, Year Two will be even better.

LINE OF THE TOURNEY
My favorite stat line of the weekend comes courtesy of Purdue's Dan Black. The All-Big Ten 3B posted this line against Notre Dame: 0 AB, 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 RBI, 5 BB. Yep, five walks. (Check it out.) Either the Irish really respect the Boiler's power-hitter or they had some serious trouble finding the plate when he strolled up there.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
The good folks at collegebaseball360.com have released the official Big East/Big Ten Challenge All-Tournament Team. Here's their list.

BTH ALL-WEEKEND TEAM
As yesterday drew to a close, I began rehashing the boxscores looking to select an all-tournament side made up of just Big Ten players. Surprise! My list and the "official" one, don't quite mesh. Not only do we have a different players, but I actually selected a firstbaseman and secondbaseman. I'm all in favor of expanding the list of honorees to include anyone deemed worthy, but come on. You can't have a baseball team without a right side of the infield.

It won't make-up for those guys ignored, but I present the very first (and possibly last) All-Weekend Team of 2009.

C - Josh Phegley, Indiana (6 for 11/3 R/3 RBI/BB)
1B - Jerrud Sabourin, Indiana (7 for 14/2B/2 R/RBI)
2B - Derek McCallum, Minnesota (4 for 12/2 RBI/2 BB/SB)
SS - Brandon Wikoff, Illinois (5 for 12/HR/6 R/2 RBI/5 BB)
3B - Dominic Altobelli, Illinois (5 for 13/3B/3 R/6 RBI/2 BB/HBP)
3B - Brian DeLucia, Ohio State (3 for 11/2 HR/3 R/6 RBI)
OF - Mike Kvasnicka, Minnesota (5 for 12/3 2B/HR/4 R/4 RBI/BB)
OF - Nick Urban, Michigan (9 for 19/R/4 RBI)
OF - Kenny Fellows, Michigan (7 for 14/R/2 RBI)
DH - Jake McLouth, Michigan (7 for 17/3B/HR/R/4 RBI)
DH - Alex Dickerson, Indiana (5 for 14/2B/HR/4 R/5 RBI)
UT - Mike Deese, Penn State (7 for 12/2B/4 R/3 RBI/3 BB)
SP - Alex Wimmers, Ohio State (6.0 IP/4 H/0 R/0 ER/3 BB/7 K; Win)
SP - Eric Jokisch, Northwestern (9.0 IP/10 H/3 R/1 ER/2 BB/9 K; CG, Win)
SP - T.J. Macy, Penn State (7.0 IP/2 H/1 R/1 ER/2 BB/8 K; ND)
BP - Andrew Armstrong, Ohio State (6.2 IP/3 H/0 R/0 ER/2 BB/5 K; Win)
RP - Drew Rucinski, Ohio State (6.1 IP/3 H/0 R/0 ER/1 BB/6 K; Save, Win)
RP - Tyler Burgoon, Michigan (5.0 IP/4 H/0 R/0 ER/0 BB/4 K; Two Wins)

BN - Chris Roberts, Michigan State (5 for 12/2B/3 R/RBI/2 SB)
BN - Brandon Haveman, Purdue (7 for 19/2B/3 R/4 RBI/BB/SB)
BN - Eric Decker, Minnesota (7 for 13/2B/3 R/BB/SB)
BN - Aaron Johnson, Illinois (4 for 12/3 R/4 RBI/BB/HBP)
BN - Wes Freie, Iowa (2 for 8/HR/4 R/2 RBI/5.0 IP/6 H/1 R/1 ER/2 BB/7 K; Win)
BP - Nolan Moody, Michigan State (7.0 IP/7 H/2 R/2 ER/BB/K; Win)
BP - Eric Katzman, Michigan (7.0 IP/7 H/1 R/1 ER/BB/4 K; Win)
BP - Eric Arnett, Indiana (6.0 IP/4 H/2 R/2 ER/2 BB/8 K; Win)

Per usual, I probably omitted somebody that deserved the honor. Presuming, of course, you think making my All-Weekend Team is an honor. If you want to point out my oversight, stupidity, whatever, drop me an email and make the case for your player. I'm not opposed to making changes. Just be advised that I might not concur with you.

The Challenge: Sunday Open Thread

Technically, it's not quite Sunday morning as I type this. However, the teams are getting an early start on Sunday, so I'm going to get this thread started now. Just like the previous two days, I encourage everyone to share scoring updates and opinions in the comments section.

I'll be adding my thoughts throughout the day. Although, I wouldn't expect anything from me prior to lunch.

6:15pm UConn punished Northwestern, 10-1. UConn SS Mike Olt went 4 for 4 with 4 RBI and a homerun. The Wildcats could only muster five hits.

5:30pm Notre Dame beat Purdue, 9-4. Boilers' OF Brandon Haveman had three hits, two runs and a RBI.

Illinois beat WVU, 17-10. Illini C Aaron Johnson had three hits, three runs and three RBI. Pete Cappetta had three hits and three RBI. Joe Bonadonna also had three RBI.

4:40pm The Hoosiers prevail, 9-7, over South Florida. Freshman Blake Monar gets a win in his first collegiate start. Jake Dunning picks up his first collegiate save, as well. Freshman Alex Dickerson had three hits, including his first homer, and drove in four runs. Jerrud Sabourin had three hits and Josh Phegley had two.

The Big Ten will take today's action and the series.

4:25pm Michigan wins, 4-2. Eric Katzman goes seven innings and gets the win. Mike Dufek picks up the save.

4:20pm Michigan is up on St. John's 4-2. It's the ninth inning. Purdue is up on ND, 4-3. It's the top of the eighth. Indiana is holding on against USF, 9-7. That game is in the bottom of the eighth. Illinois is doubling up WVU, 14-7. It's the sixth inning.

2:45pm Ohio State beat Cincinnati, 6-5. Brian DeLucia homers twice and drives in four. Dan Burkhart triples and drives in two. Drew Rucincki gets the win in relief. Jake Hale posts save number one in 2009.

Iowa downs Georgetown, 4-2. Wes Freie goes yard and has two RBI. Freie also started and posted his first win. Freie worked five innings allowing six hits, a walk and one earned run. Freie struck out seven Hoyas. Justin Toole gets two hits and drives in the other two Hawkeyes runs. Mike Schurz posts the save.

Minnesota beat up Michigan State, 7-2. The U's Mike Kvansnicka homers, amongst his two hits, and drives in three. A.J. Pettersen got three hits, two runs scored and two RBI for the Gophers. Tom Buske was the winner. Buske went six innings giving up three hits and two earned runs. Chris Roberts and Jonathan Roof both had a pair of hits for MSU.

Penn State finished off Seton Hall, 6-1. The Nittany Lions post all six runs in the ninth. David Lutz won the game in relief. Lutz worked the final two frames and didn't allow a hit. T.J. Macy pitched seven innings of two-hit baseball. Macy allowed only one run. Mike Deese had three hits and two RBI. Blake Lynd had two RBI, as well.

West Virginia is up on Illinois, 5-1. They are in the second inning.

Michigan is up on St. John's, 3-1. It's the bottom of the sixth.

Notre Dame and Purdue are scoreless in the second. Indiana and South Florida are also scoreless in the third. I've got no update on Northwestern and UConn.

The Challenge: Saturday Open Thread

It's Day Two of the Big East/Big Ten Challenge. It wasn't a bad first day for the Big Ten. The wins were all close affairs, but, oh, those losses. When the Big East sides prevailed, they won in dominant fashion. The boys from the midwest could use a few more convincing victories this afternoon. Although, I'd be happy with more W's than L's, thank you.

It's only one game, so we shouldn't put too much stock in the wins, losses or overall performances. Yet, this is a blog, so you expect two things. 1) For me to say something. 2) For wild speculation to rule the day. To live up to those limited expectations, let me share these thoughts from Opening Day.

Questions about Indiana's pitching, the bullpen, in particular, will continue. No, Matt Bashore didn't have his "A" game yesterday, but the bullpen did nothing to stop the bleeding.

Yes, Josh Phegley can hit. A four-hit performance in the opener will not hurt his All-America campaign.

Michigan's untested players -- Nick Urban, Kenny Fellows, the freshmen catchers -- Coley Crank and Jake McLouth, -- all passed their first test of '09.

Alex Wimmers and Drew Rucinski were tremendous for Ohio State. You have to like the Buckeyes pitching this year.

OSU, Michigan, Purdue and Illinois played like experienced teams yesterday, didn't they?

NU's Eric Jokisch is one of the better pitchers in the conference.

Well, those are just a few things I was thinking as yesterday unfolded. But, today is a new day. Again, I encourage you to post scoring update and your thoughts as the action proceeds.

11:00pm The Irish double up Illinois, 14-7. Dominic Altobelli had four RBI in the losing effort.

USF held off Purdue, 7-5. Dan Black homered for the Boilers, Tyler Spillner and Jon Cummins both had a pair of hits.

This wraps up tonight's blogging. The conference's split today's series at four games a piece.

9:44pm Add Ohio State to the winner's column. The Buckeyes stopped UConn, 6-4. Andrew Armstrong went 6.2 innings, his career best, allowing three hits, two walks and striking out five. He didn't yield a run. Brian DeLucia hit a two-run double and Zach Hurley hit a bases-loaded triple to pace the offense.

Illinois and Notre Dame are tied at 7-7 in the seventh. South Florida is up on Purdue, 6-3, in the bottom of the seventh. With the Buckeyes win, the worst the Big Ten will do today is split.

7:15pm Seton Hall doubled up Michigan State, 8-4. Eli Boike and Andrew Carpenter both homered in the loss. Boike drove in a pair of Spartan runs.

Michigan beat Cincinnati, 6-1. Wolverine RHP Travis Smith struck out nine in five innings and got the win. Matt Miller came on and tossed four innings of relief, striking out another seven, and posted the save. Mike Dufek homered, drove in three and walked twice. Nick Urban had three more hits and had two RBI.

St. John's thumped Iowa, 18-3. The Hawkeyes managed just three hits. Zach McCool had one of them, scored once and drove in a run.

Penn State beat Northwestern, 9-1. Scott Kelley gets the victory going 5.2 IP. He struck out five Wildcats. Cory Wine finished with two hits, three runs scored and three RBI. Rick Marlin drove in two. Michael Glantz and Grant Youngblood both had two hits. For NU, Kenneth Avila and Tony Vercelli both collected a pair of hits.

If my math is good, the Big Ten leads today's match-up three to two. Of course, we've got three games just getting underway. Illinois vs. Notre Dame, Ohio State vs. UConn and Purdue and South Florida.

3:30pm Eric Arnett went six innings giving up four hits, two walks, two earned runs and whiffed eight as IU drops the Hoyas, 12-4. Jerrud Sabourin had three hits. The Hoosiers and Gophers are the Big Ten winners so far today.

St. John's still leads Iowa, 13-2. The Hawkeyes comeback seems to be stalled. It's only the fourth inning, though.

2:50pm Jake McLouth's tenth inning single, his third hit of the game, drove in Anthony Toth with the winning run as Michigan outlasted Purdue, 4-3. McLouth had two RBI. Toth scored twice while Mike Dufek and Nick Urban both collected a pair of hits. Tyler Burgoon pitches four innings of three hit baseball to earn his second win in as many games. Burgoon struck out four, as well.

For Purdue, Jonathan Lilly went 3 for 5. Brandon Haveman and Alex Jaffee each had two hits a piece.

Indiana is up on Georgetown, 11-2, in the seventh. IU posted six in the first inning and haven't looked back. Five Hoosiers have two hits, Ethan Wilson has 3 RBI and SS Jake Dunning has driven in two.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, St. John's put 12 on the board in the first inning and lead Iowa, 12-2. It's the top of the second. Tim Morris and Joe Panik both had 3 RBI in the first. The Hawkeyes have scored two this frame, so the comeback is on.

Cory Wine and Rick Marlin have each knocked in a pair of runs and Penn State is out in front of Northwestern, 7-1. They are in the bottom of the sixth.

1:10pm Minnesota beats West Virginia, 5-4. Cullen Sexton picks up the win tossing two innings of relief work. Derek McCallum had three hits and two RBI. Eric Decker also had three hits. Michael Kvansnicka (two doubles) and Matt Nohelty both had a pair of hits. As a note, Nohelty continues to DH.

Michigan and Purdue, in a rematch of last year's top two teams, are tied 3-3 after six innings. Boilers' OF Brandon Haveman has two hits and a RBI. Michigan freshman DH Jake McLouth also has a pair of hits and a RBI.

The Challenge: Friday Open Thread

The Big East/Big Ten Challenge is underway (weather permitting, of course). Each of the next three days, I'm going to start an open thread where either you or I can comment on the day's action. Let the games begin!

11:17pm Eric Jokisch tosses a complete game and Northwestern prevails, 5-3, over Georgetown. The Big Ten takes Day One.

Illinois is beating Iowa, 7-2. It's the seventh inning.

That's all for tonight, folks. Thanks to everyone for sharing updates and opinions in the comments section. I hope everyone will be back for more on Saturday. I, alas, may be in the snow removal business for part(s) of the day.

10:25pm Ohio State downs Notre Dame, 2-0. Alex Wimmers gets the "W", Drew Rucinski notches the save. Wimmers fanned seven in six innings. He yielded four hits and three walks. Rucinski struck out three in three innings of work. Justin Miller and Cory Rupert drive in the Buckeye tallies. A very strong opener for OSU. The Big Ten will do no worse than a split of today's games.

Iowa is up 2-1 over Illinois. It's the bottom of the fifth inning.

9:46pm As you may have noted in the comments, after a strong start, things have gone south for the Big Ten. Michigan and Purdue posted dramatic come-from-behind wins and Michigan State also held serve in the first game. However, the Big East has taken the last three affairs. St. John's drilled Penn State 15-6. West Virginia put a hurt on Indiana, 14-4. Seton Hall pounded Minnesota, 11-2.

Two games left with Northwestern against Georgetown and Notre Dame versus Ohio State. Illinois and Iowa are also underway.

4:25pm Apparently, the Boilers and Bearcats are battling it out in a good, old fashioned slugfest. (Check out the comments section. BTH readers are on top of all the action.) 10-8, Cincinnati was the last update. Correction, 9:44pm: It's wasn't Satterwhite who went yard twice, it was both Mike Spina and Justin Riddell who homered twice.

Keep checking the comments for updates and posters, keep up the good work. I'll be reporting back in later this evening.

4:15pm West Virginia has plated three in the top of the first and lead Indiana by a 3-0 score. A lineup note, freshmen Cody Webber got the start at 2B for IU. Chris Hervey (RF), Evan Crawford (CF) and Michael Earley (LF) are your Hoosier OFs. Kipp Schutz, anyone?

I can't quite figure out what to make of the Purdue and Cincinnati game. The only score I've been able to track down still has Cincinnati up 5-4, in the fourth. It's been that way for over an hour. Maybe if I turn on the Big Ten Network, they will have the game on ............ oh, never mind.

4:05pm Michigan wins it, 6-5, in the bottom of the ninth with two outs. Nick Urban opened the inning by doubling, two outs were recorded, then Kenny Fellows hit a ball back up the middle that the USF infielder couldn't quite handle. Urban scored and Michigan posts a come-from-behind win in the opener.

I'll presume it's a win for Tyler Burgoon who sat the Bulls down in order in the top of the stanza. Other good news for the Maize and Blue, both frosh catchers -- Coley Crank and Jake McLouth -- displayed some power. More on this game a bit later. Time to see if I can track down any other scores.

3:45pm Michigan ties it up at 5-5 in the bottom of the eighth. LaMarre drives in two and a failed pick-off attempt yeilds the tying run.

3:30pm USF adds on to its lead, the score is now 5-2 Bulls in the eighth.

3:10pm Apparently, there are technical problems at Jack Russell Stadium where Michigan is playing USF. Neither their radio or the GameTracker can function. USF is doing a live chat from the site. Plenty of Maize and Blue supporters appear to be in the Bulls' chat room. South Florida leads Michigan, 3-2 in the seventh inning.

The GameTracker for the Purdue/Cincinnati contest froze up with the Bearcats up 5-4, in the fourth. Ahh, the joys of following college baseball.

2:00pm Cincinnati posted a three-spot on Purdue in the top of the third. The Bearcats have wrestled back the lead, 5-4. No score to report from the USF - Michigan game. It was supposed to begin an hour ago.

1:50pm Nick Overmyer singled in a run, Wolgamot drove in two more and Purdue now leads Cincinnati (a pretty good team, by the way), 4-2.

1:30pm The Jake Boss Era opens at Michigan State with a victory. The Spartans down UConn, 4-2. Nolan Moody looks good in his first start going seven innings while allowing seven hits. Kurt Wunderlich pitches a scoreless eighth and Kurtis Frymier pitches the final frame to earn his first MSU save.

Brandon Eckerle batted leadoff and collected three hits, two RBI and stole two bases. A.J. Shindler and Chris Roberts both had a pair of hits. Eli Boike and Jeff Holm both swiped two bags and Roberts also stole a base. Is it premature to think that Coach Boss might be a tad aggressive on the base paths this year?

Cincinnati has jumped out on Purdue, 2-1 after the first inning. Bearcat cleanup hitter Mike Spina hit a two-run homer off Matt Bischoff. Boilers' 2B Ben Wolgamot scored on a Tyler Spliner sac fly.

BA Previews The Challenge, Nation

Jesse Burkhart and Brian Chmielewski of Baseball America preview this weekend's Big East/Big Ten Challenge series. In addition to offering up a preview of the teams, they look at some of the individual performers.

BA's Aaron Fitt previews the big stories around the nation heading into the first weekend of play.

Early Scheduling Update

Three Big Ten programs have released their 2009 baseball schedule. Indiana, Iowa and Michigan have announced their '09 opponents (the inevitable alterations notwithstanding, of course). Kudos to all three for getting this information out so early. I'll probably be reviewing these in greater depth at some point down the road, so click on the links and get a look at what the Hoosiers, Hawkeyes and Wolverines face in the coming year.

I should also note that the long-awaited Big Ten/Big East baseball challenge has been finalized and will begin play next year. While this will never be as big as the ACC/Big Ten basketball challenge, I love the concept of this baseball tournament.

The reason for my interest is that I believe that the Big East gets the traditional "east coast media bias" even in college baseball. This format provides the Big Ten with the opportunity to display how they stack up against their fellow (mostly) northern foes. (With or without global warming, USF isn't going to be in the snowbelt anytime soon.)

Yet, this series probably could not come at a worse time for the Big Ten, as one would expect the conference to take another step backwards this year. I'm not sure how the Big East stacks up in '09, but I'm not expecting the Big Ten to provide more than one NCAA tournament team next year. (The good news is that I'm often wrong. The other piece of good news is that it's only September. I've got plenty of time to retract my prediction.)

I haven't heard if there will be any television coverage, but it would seem like an ideal situation for the Big Ten Network. Although, that would require the conference to commit money to baseball, which they are generally opposed to.

Here's the tournament schedule:

BIG EAST/BIG TEN CHALLENGE MATCHUPS
February 20-22, 2009

Day 1 - Friday, February 20
Ohio State vs. Notre Dame
Penn State vs. St. John's
Illinois vs. Iowa
Michigan State vs. Connecticut
Michigan vs. South Florida
Northwestern vs. Georgetown
Minnesota vs. Seton Hall
Indiana vs. West Virginia
Purdue vs. Cincinnati

Day 2 - Saturday, February 21
Michigan vs. Cincinnati
Purdue vs. South Florida
Penn State vs. Northwestern
Ohio State vs. Connecticut
Indiana vs. Georgetown
Illinois vs. Notre Dame
Minnesota vs. West Virginia
Michigan State vs. Seton Hall
Iowa vs. St. John's

Day 3 - Sunday, February 22
Michigan vs. St. John's
Ohio State vs. Cincinnati
Minnesota vs. Michigan State
Northwestern vs. Connecticut
Indiana vs. South Florida
Iowa vs. Georgetown
Purdue vs. Notre Dame
Penn State vs. Seton Hall
Illinois vs. West Virginia